India to benefit from Unisys-Ciba Specialty Chemicals contract

On 3 October, Unisys Corporation of the US announced the signing of a five-year global IT outsourcing contract with Ciba Specialty Chemicals of Switzerland. Unisys will reinforce Ciba's global IT strategy, and provide a comprehensive range of IT services to 12,000 Ciba employees throughout Europe, the Americas and Asia.

Unisys will use its global sourcing capabilities for Ciba, combining local service delivery with delivery from Unisys services centres in Budapest in Hungary and Bangalore in India. The American software company will provide help desk services in nine languages: English, German, French, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, Mandarin, Korean, and Japanese.

According to a statement by Ciba chief information officer Michael Loechle, the Swiss company needs an expertly managed IT infrastructure that gives it the agility to compete in a constantly changing global marketplace. The services include end-user services, data centre services and management of SAP solutions. The initial rollout across all locations is planned for completion in 2008.

In Switzerland, Unisys will collaborate with Swisscom IT Services to provide Ciba with data centre services and management of SAP solutions. Randy Hendricks, president, Unisys Global Outsourcing and Infrastructure Services, says, "This is a landmark engagement for Unisys as we continue to grow our outsourcing business worldwide. Employing a truly global sourcing model, Unisys can deliver services whenever and wherever Ciba's employees need them."

Unisys has a large development centre in Bangalore. The company also has significant operations in Mumbai and Delhi.